Collier officials, residents say you can never be too prepared for a big storm

Naples resident fill gas tanks, get water and food and prepare for the storm.

Produced by Manuel Martinez & Michelle Cassel

NAPLES - As a light rain began falling near the Naples Pier on Monday afternoon, Peter Clements snapped photos of his three children digging in the sand and playing on the beach.

The 41-year-old has been vacationing with is family in Florida for two weeks, and wanted the youngsters to get their fill of the beach before flying home to England this evening. But with a flight slated to leave Tampa at 7 p.m., and Tropical Storm Fay churning in the Straits of Florida, Clements was concerned he and his family would be stranded.

"The difficulty is knowing when is the right time to leave to keep ahead of it," Clements said of the storm, adding that he's never been through a hurricane before and doesn't want to.

By 3 p.m. Fay made landfall over Key West with 60 mph maximum winds, and was moving north, northwest at about 13 mph.

Fay was expected to continue its northward track and strengthen into a hurricane late Monday or early Tuesday, eventually making landfall near Fort Myers this morning.

Collier County Emergency Management officials continued to emphasize concerns about expected storm surge, possible flooding and an unstable atmosphere that could spin off tornadoes. The 6-to-8 foot storm surge officials were warning of on Sunday was downgraded to 4 to 6 feet instead.

High winds were expected to reach Collier County by 9 p.m. Monday, and officials predicted that the 2 a.m. high tide would be exacerbated by the storm surge.

"Tropical Storm/Hurricane Fay has really put some unique challenges out there in terms of the storm's ultimate track and intensity," Summers said.

Summers again stressed the importance of hiding from the winds and running from the water.

On Monday morning Collier commissioners declared a state of emergency, and in the afternoon established a curfew running from 11 p.m. Monday to 6 a.m. Tuesday.

Emergency management issued a voluntary evacuation order for all areas west and south of U.S. 41. Of particular concern, Summers said, were communities on the county's south side; Everglades City, Goodland, Marco Island, Isles of Capri and Chokoloskee.

The county opened three shelters Monday afternoon at Golden Gate High School, Palmetto Ridge High School and Immokalee High School, with Palmetto Ridge serving as the special needs shelter.

The Collier County Chapter of the American Red Cross is staffing the shelters, and may open additional shelters as required by hurricane conditions.

"We have everybody in place, everybody is trained and knows what to do," said Red Cross spokeswoman Dianne Reed. "They just know the drill."

Collier County schools are closed Tuesday, delaying the opening of the new school year.

Summers said county staff worked all weekend to prepare for Fay's arrival. Because it's been a few years since a significant tropical storm or hurricane struck Collier County, Summers said some residents may be complacent. But a Category 1 hurricane isn't anything to ignore, officials said.

"If the angle of approach changes, it could be a far greater storm in terms of impact," Summers said.

On Monday local law enforcement kept an eye on Fay and made preparations for her arrival.

"Our main responsibility is going initially to make sure all the roads are open. Any disabled motorists, make sure we get them off the road. If there are any crashes we'll start to handle them," said Lt. Chris Miller of the Florida Highway Patrol.

The FHP and Naples police said they would have to pull officers off the streets when winds increase to about 45 mph.

"As soon as the storm passes, we want to get out the door and get going," Naples police spokesman Michael Herman said. "We're raring to go."

Collier County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Karie Partington said her agency has plans in place for any kind of weather emergency, and adjusts them as needed. The Sheriff's Office planned to bring additional deputies in Monday night and put them on 12-hour shifts.

"There's an alpha shift and a bravo shift, and it allows us to have more people on duty," Partington said.

The Sheriff's Office has specialized equipment that allows it to have a presence even during the storm, Partington said, although she would not say what that specialized equipment is.

"Our mission is to preserve and protect life and property," Partington said. "That is going to be our focus."

Fire officials also prepared their stations Monday, and brought in additional staff before Fay's arrival.

As Fay bore down Monday on Southwest Florida, water managers overrode computer controls to empty canals more quickly and checked drainage inlets and grates for debris that might cause flooding Tuesday.

Fay could test new drainage projects and modernized weirs built at key spots around Collier County since Tropical Storm Ernesto left parts of Golden Gate Estates under water for weeks in 2006.

Whether the canal levels fell enough overnight depends largely on how much rain falls, how quickly and whether it comes at high tide, water managers said.

Employees and contractors at local hotels prepared for Tropical Storm Fay by taking in all outdoor furniture and tearing down awnings.

Phillip Hanegan, along with three other employees from Naples Awning, were removing awnings at The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club at 851 Gulf Shore Boulevard N.

"We do what we're told to do," Hanegan said.

Jim Gunderson, the hotel's general manager, said the hotel was working under its plan for a Category 1 hurricane or tropic storm. He expected the cleanup effort after the storm to be modest.

"At this point I don't consider it to be a big story," Gunderson said. "We just haven't had one in a couple years. We'll just have some wind and rain and come Wednesday morning we'll clean up. We don't want anyone to freak out."

Officials at The Ritz-Carlton Beach Resort were monitoring county emergency plans and responding accordingly, said spokeswoman Lauren Rotchford. Guests could request to transfer to the hotel's golf resort that's more inland, Rotchford added.

Local grocery stores and hardware stores also saw larger than normal crowds Monday.

Jessica MacDonald, 21, of Naples, filled up two carts with food, water, beer, snacks and soda at the Publix at 1981 U.S. 41 North, across from the Coastland Center mall. MacDonald, who was in Southwest Florida when Hurricane Charley passed through, said there are six people staying at her home, including two children.

She didn't expect Fay to be as intense as Charley.

"At the same time, I didn't think Charley would be as bad as it was," MacDonald said. "You can never be too prepared. It never hurts to have 12 gallons of water."